Project Updates

December 21, 2017
The south area of Centennial Park, including the new South Centennial Parking lot, is now open. The fencing was removed by the contractor yesterday. The rink will open to the public on Saturday, December 23.

December 15, 2017

The power at the rink was energized by Alectra this week.

The ice rink lighting was installed.

The ice rink boards and fencing will start going in today.

The remaining electrical work for the rink ice making will be completed on Monday or Tuesday next week.

The rink is tentatively scheduled to open to the public on Dec. 21, 2017.

In order to recognize the generous private donations as well as the Ontario 150 Grant related to the Basketball Court and Ice Rink construction, an official opening is being planned for early in 2018 (date TBD).

November 24, 2017

The remaining sections of concrete walkway were completed this week - the entire pathway network is now complete.

The railings for the bridge deck have been installed. The wing wall railings will be installed in 2-3 weeks.

Much of the sod is now laid and hopefully will be completed this week.

The top lift of parking lot pavement is planned for Monday the 27th.

Electrical work for the lighting and ice rink will carry on over the next few weeks.

Fencing will be taken down and the south park turned over once the lighting is operational about the third week of December.

October 27, 2017

The basketball court/ice rink slab was poured last week.

The bottom lift of asphalt was laid in the parking lot.

The lakeside walking trail base has been placed and compacted. The walkway should be paved next week.

Topsoil for the grassed area is under way.

The electrical installations are ongoing.

October 20, 2017

The pedestrian bridge over Dyment’s Creek had its concrete deck poured and is curing for the 28 days;

Parking Lot D (i.e. the large parking lot across from the WWTF plant) has its base asphalt

The basketball court-ice rink has its concrete poured

The shoreline protection repair work for the Tiffin Boat Launch will proceed at the end of October

The electrical supply for the new parking lot, basketball court-ice rink and pathways is moving forward with Alectra.

October 12, 2017

The pedestrian bridge over Dyment’s Creek had its concrete deck poured last week;

Parking Lot D (i.e. the large parking lot across from the WWTF plant) has its curbs poured, most of the lights erected, and will be paved late this week, or next week

The basketball court-ice rink has its reinforcing steel placed, is having the glycol piping placed in preparation for the concrete pour in the next couple of weeks

The shoreline protection repair work for the Tiffin Boat Launch will proceed at the end of October

The electrical supply for the new parking lot, basketball court-ice rink and pathways is moving forward with Alectra.

The project appears on schedule and to be substantially complete near the end of November 2017, with some relatively minor clean up in spring 2018.

October 6, 2017

The pedestrian bridge over Dyment’s Creek will have its concrete deck poured this week.

Parking Lot D (i.e. the large parking lot across from the WWTF plant) has its curbs poured, most of the lights erected, and will be paved next week.

The basketball court-ice rink has its glycol piping and reinforcing steel delivered, and that will be assembled with the courts being paved in the next couple of weeks.

The shoreline protection work for Centennial Park is complete and some similar repair work by the Tiffin Boat Launch will proceed at the end of October.

The electrical supply for the new parking lot, basketball court-ice rink and pathways is moving forward with Alectra.

The project appears on schedule and to be substantially complete near the end of November 2017 with some relatively minor clean up in spring 2018.

September 7, 2017

The south portion of the park below Dyment’s Creek remains closed.

Dyment’s pond area on the west side of Lakeshore is now open.

The new basketball court / ice rink excavation is complete, and the granular base is being placed and compacted.

The South Centennial Parking Lot is excavated and being re-graded to become green space. The new larger parking lot will be built where the old Lakeshore Drive was.

The South Centennial park area, including the South Centennial parking lot, is now closed to the public. The volleyball courts remain open.

Excavation for a new basketball / ice rink pad is underway.

The new parking lots at Victoria Street are open (pay stations have not been installed yet).

The Dyment’s Pond area on the west side of Lakeshore Drive is being reopened for public use this week. There is still trail surfacing and seeding to be completed over the next few weeks.

August 17, 2017

The new parking lots on either side of Victoria Street will be closed Friday, Aug. 18 for top lift paving. The lots are scheduled to be ready for public use by the end of the day, as soon as the line painting is complete.

On Monday, Aug. 21, the South Centennial parking lot will be closed. Signs will be posted.

The landscaping and trails within the Dyments Pond area is taking shape, but will still require a couple more weeks of work.

August 11, 2017

The north end of Centennial Park is now open to the public, except the drinking fountains.

New parking lots north and south of Victoria Street are being prepared to receive a top lift of asphalt the week of Aug. 14.

Trail construction adjacent to Dyment’s Pond is in progress

Some temporary fencing at the south of the park is in place, but the South Centennial parking lot will not close until both new Victoria Street lots are open.

Pedestrians will temporarily share the bike trail at the south end of the park, with a temporary connecting path along the north side of Hotchkiss Creek.

July 28, 2017

Fencing separating the new concrete walkway from the grassed areas adjacent the boardwalk will start coming down on Monday July 31

The remainder of the fencing will be removed Thursday Aug 3

The only fence to remain through Kempenfest will be around the parking lot with the trailers and storage as well as the fence enclosing the lay down area for the pedestrian bridge construction

New parking lot (south of Victoria St.) will be open for Aug 4.

Contractor will be returning to work in the Dyment’s Pond area during the Kempenfest shut down

The new irrigation system for the park should be operational by July 31.

June 14, 2017

Overall, the contract is just over 50% complete.

The boardwalk is fully open for public use, but there will need to be some deficiency corrections in the weeks to come (this work will not require closing the boardwalk).

Both pedestrian and cycling traffic will be temporarily transferred over to the new concrete path later this week to facilitate access to other work.

Sod and tree planting will commence within the next few days starting from the north end of the park.

Trenching for sanitary sewer in the South Centennial Park will start this week.

June 7, 2017

The improved North Centennial Parking Lot, adjacent the marina boat launch, is now open (trailers only).

May 19, 2017

The playground at Centennial Park is open and will remain open throughout the construction in the park. The fencing remains, but the playground can be accessed by the washroom building via the new boardwalk along the beach.

New parking lots located north and south of Victoria Street will open in time for Kempenfest.

The South Centennial parking lot (south of Dyment’s Creek) will remain open until August, except the south entrance and a portion of the south end of the lot will be closed.

Immediately following Kempenfest, the South Centennial parking lot will be completely closed for the remainder of the year.

A new trailer parking lot, adjacent the marina boat launch will be opened in June.

Water/Environmental

The reconstruction of Dyment’s Creek channel west of Lakeshore Drive is largely complete. A new trail and landscaping work will be completed from May through July.

Shoreline reconstruction on the south side of Dyment’s Creek adjacent the South Centennial parking lot will be undertaken from June through July.

2016 Updates

December 1, 2016

Recreation:

Paved trails will continue to be rerouted until year end with no interruption to trail continuity

The outdoor skating rink will return at the foot of Victoria Street in a slightly reduced size from last year

Public washrooms will remain open throughout the winter months

Boat launch access will remain closed until mid-December

The new boardwalk is expected to be completed in February 2017

The new pedestrian bridge over Dyment’s Creek is scheduled be constructed in Spring 2017

Playground was originally to have opened temporarily in December for the winter months. This did not occur due to issues with ground surfacing.

Parking:

The new lot north of Victoria Street will be paved by the end of 2016. It, along with the Barrie Marina lot, will remain closed until Spring 2017

Grading for the parking lot south of Victoria Street is in progress

Water:

Stormwater and water services to the park are in progress

Dyment’s Pond reconstruction (west of Lakeshore Drive) is scheduled to take place in January and February

September 21, 2016

Lakeshore Drive will be closed in both directions from Tiffin Street to Simcoe Street from Monday, Sept. 26 at 7 a.m. to Friday, Sept. 30 at 5 p.m. The detour route will be along Bradford Street, via Tiffin Street and Simcoe Street. The Tiffin Boat Launch will remain open during this time and pedestrians can cross Lakeshore Drive at Victoria Street to access the Marina and beach.

The full closure of Lakeshore Drive is required so the contractor can complete asphalt repairs under warranty from the recent re-construction. Signs advising of the road closure were posted last week.

Centennial Park Update

Starting this week, work will ramp up on the Centennial Park improvements. More fencing will be installed at the north end of the park on Thursday, Sept. 22 and in about 2 weeks fencing will be installed in the area of the playground. The fencing will largely prevent access to the open green space in the park, however, the following will remain open and accessible throughout construction:

Pedestrian and cycle trail

Public washrooms

Beach

Access to the pedestrian and cycle trails will be available at Victoria Street, the Marina boat launch and at the Dyments Creek Bridge. The Marina boat launch and North Centennial Parking Lot will be closed on Oct. 17 until Spring 2017.

January 4, 2016

December saw the completion of the culvert extensions and the new channel being opened up at Bunkers Creek. A new section of cycling trail passes over the new culverts.

Paved entrances to the beach parking and the marina boat launch from the new Lakeshore Dr. are also now complete.

Watermains will be completed in early January allowing the remaining excavation for the Dyments Creek channel between the new Lakeshore Dr. and Kempenfelt Bay.

Dyments Creek flow should be making its way under the Lakeshore Dr. and through the new channel by the end of January.

Remaining landscape work as well as repairs to the Lakeshore Dr. top lift of asphalt will be carried out in the Spring of 2016. This will represent the completion of the current contract.

2015 Updates

October 5, 2015 The City of Barrie’s first Mayor, Willard Kinzie and Mayor Jeff Lehman helped to officially open the new Lakeshore Drive this afternoon. The two of them took a quick spin on the new road, driving a 1967 Monaco 500. The car was lent to the Mayor and former Mayor for the event by Barrie Thunder Classics, a local club dedicated to the preservation and enjoyment of classic and custom cars and trucks. Media Release

September 25, 2015The new Lakeshore Drive will open to the public on October 5th at 5:00pm! The road has been realigned onto the former railroad bed, which allows for expanded waterfront parkland. The parkland expansion will increase the green recreational space available on the waterfront. Centennial Park improvements are anticipated to commence in 2016.

August 27, 2015Curb and gutter as well as the first lift of asphalt is in place from Toronto Street to just north of Dyment’s Creek. Heritage lighting is installed through the same section with tree planting underway north of Bunker’s Creek Bridge. The balance of the road work will be complete with traffic switching over to the new road in late September. Site preparation has started in Centennial Park for the construction of the new channel for Dyment’s Creek plus the construction of the new bridge abutments for the Dyment’s Creek pedestrian bridge through the park. Pedestrian traffic will be re-routed around the construction site for approximately 3 months.

June 30, 2015Victoria Street has again been opened to through traffic between Lakeshore Drive and Ellen Street. Paving of Victoria Street between Bradford Street and Lakeshore Drive is expected to take place Monday, July 6th, weather permitting. There will be some temporary closures of Victoria Street to facilitate the paving operations during this time. The paving operations are expected to be completed the same day and the road will be opened upon completion. Access to properties from Ellen Street will not be affected. Access for emergency vehicles will be maintained.

June 2, 2015 The helical piles and grade beams to support the storm sewers are complete north of Victoria Street and will be complete in June for the balance of the site. Victoria Street is closed at Lakeshore until the end of June to allow for pile, grade beam and sewer installation. The temporary diversion of Lakeshore Drive through the marina parking lot will be left in place until the traffic is moved onto the new alignment which is expected in July. The road bed north of Victoria Street is complete up to Granular ‘B’ and ready for PowerStream electrical installations to be followed by curb, gutter and sidewalks.

April 2, 2015Piles and grade beams to support the storm sewers will continue through spring. There will be a temporary diversion of Lakeshore Drive this spring through the Marina Parking Lot. This will allow for the underground piping and curb work across the existing section of Lakeshore at the north end of the project. Preparation of the new Lakeshore Drive road bed will start this month.

February 27, 2015Winter work continues with dewatering and helical pile foundations, grade bream, storm sewers, oil/grit separators and sanitary sewers, all on Lakeshore Drive. The existing Lakeshore Drive and Victoria Street are both fully open to traffic.

January 19, 2015 Contractor is continuing with work throughout the winter as weather permits. Work currently underway includes the helical pile foundations, grade beam and storm sewer on Lakeshore Drive, North of Victoria Street. Excavation for storm sewer foundations South of Victoria Street is expected to commence later this month. Lakeshore Drive and Victoria Street are both fully open to traffic and disruptions are anticipated to be minimal in the foreseeable future.

2014 Updates

November 20, 2014Helical pile foundation installation has been completed on Victoria Street and is currently underway on Lakeshore Drive for the storm sewer works adjacent to Bunker’s Creek. Completion of restoration on Victoria Street and its subsequent reopening is anticipated by Thursday, November 27, 2014.

August 29, 2014 Dewatering installation has been partially completed and will resume once helical pile installation begins. Helical pile testing is underway prior to the installation of production piles. Road Closure Notice: Victoria Street will be closed from Bradford Street to Lakeshore Drive for pavement rehabilitation and installation of underground infrastructure. Road closure will be in effect from September 3, 2014 and should be reopened by September 24, 2014.

July 30, 2014
The City of Barrie has awarded the Phase 2 Lakeshore construction project to Harvie Construction Inc. This phase involves the reconstruction of Lakeshore Drive from Toronto Street to Tiffin Street on a new alignment west of the existing roadway.

Traffic Impacts

During Kempenfest 2014, parking on the gravel areas west of Lakeshore Drive will be available. However, after Kempenfest the existing gravel parking area between Victoria Street and Toronto Street will be closed to public access and will not be re-opened, as the contractor will commence installations in preparation for dewatering relating to storm sewer works.

The existing gravel parking areas between Victoria Street and Tiffin Street will remain open to public parking until approximately mid-August, at which time preparation for dewatering will commence.

July 11, 2014
Bunker’s Creek and Dyment’s Creek bridge structures are complete. Outstanding works include the decorative stone facing, parapet railings and site cleanup. Award of Contract 2 for the realignment of Lakeshore Drive is imminent, with grading works commencing shortly thereafter.

March 27, 2014
Bunker’s Creek bridge substructure is complete with the exception of the erosion control slab underneath the bridge. Superstructure work continues with the placement of the hollow core slab girders (photo) on the abutments. Upcoming work will include forming, steel and concrete placement for the deck, approach slabs and barrier walls. Dyment’s Creek bridge precast spans have been placed, with preparatory work for the deck, wingwalls, erosion control slab and barrier walls ongoing.

January 31, 2014 All pile driving on this project is complete. Dewatering is in full operation to ensure buried structure components are constructed in dry conditions and will be deactivated at each site when all creek-level works are completed. Bunker’s Creek bridge substructure construction continues, including formwork, steel and concrete placement for the wingwalls and the erosion control slab. Dyment’s Creek bridge work continues with excavation and preparatory work for footing construction.

2013 Updates

December 20, 2013Final testing on the piles driven at Dyment’s Creek is still in progress; completion is scheduled for early January, 2014.

Bunker’s Creek bridge substructure construction continues, including formwork, steel and concrete placement for the abutments, wingwalls and the erosion control slab. Dewatering is in full operation to ensure buried structure components are constructed in dry conditions.

The Contractor has scheduled a holiday shutdown between December 23, 2013 and January 3, 2014. Work is expected to restart as early as January 6, 2014.

December 6, 2013Production pile driving is complete at the Dyment’s Creek bridge site. Final testing will be carried out in the coming week which will include periodic re-tapping of piles.

Footing construction, including formwork, steel & concrete placement is ongoing at the Bunker’s Creek bridge site. Dewatering is in full operation to ensure the footing is constructed in dry conditions.

November 22, 2013Pile driving operation was previously completed at Bunker’s Creek bridge site and Contractor commenced excavation & construction of bridge footings. Pile driving continues at the Dyment’s Creek bridge site and completion is anticipated in the first week of December.

October 7, 2013Pile driving operation is in progress at the Bunker's Creek bridge site and is expected to last until approximately the third week of October before moving to the Dyment's Creek site.

September 23, 2013Dyment's Creek diversion is complete.

September 14, 2013Turtle hatchlings released at Bear Creek Ecopark. more info

August 26, 2013Pile driving has commenced.

August 19, 2013
Bunker's Creek diversion is complete.

July 29, 2013General Contractor has mobilized to site.

July 9, 2013Turtle nest removed and sent for off-site incubation. more info

Project Features

Roadway Improvements

Reconstructing Lakeshore Drive from Toronto Street southerly to approximately 100 m north of Tiffin Street (i.e. at Hotchkiss Creek) with storm sewer, curb and gutter, a raised centre median, and on-street parallel parking;

Continuous sidewalk on the west side from Toronto Street to Tiffin Street;

Continuous bicycle path on the east side of Lakeshore Drive (in Centennial Park);

New traffic signals at the Victoria Street-Lakeshore Drive Intersection with audible and visible pedestrian crossing signals;

New traffic signals between Dyment's Creek and Hotchkiss Creek at the parking lot access on Lakeshore Drive with audible and visible pedestrian crossing signals;

Reconstruct Victoria Street from Ellen Street to Lakeshore Drive;

Resurface Victoria Street from Bradford Street to Lakeshore Drive;

Improved street lighting on Lakeshore Drive and Victoria Street;

Enhanced landscaping for the raised median and west boulevard treatment.

Bunker's Creek Improvements

A single span bridge with an opening that has a 14m span and a 1.5m high opening for creek flow;

Grading across the roadway for major storm event flows;

Creek daylighting with fish habitat enhancements between the Marina bicycle path and the new Lakeshore Drive roadway (i.e. where the Lakeshore Drive roadway is today); and,

Extending the box culvert system under the Marina Boardwalk upstream to be under the bike path, too;

Dyment's Creek Improvements

A single span bridge with an opening that has a 12m span and a 1.8m high opening for creek flow;

Lakeshore Drive

In 2004, recommendations from an Environmental Assessment (EA) Study for Improved Accessibility to Barrie Downtown and Waterfront included recommendations for the Lakeshore Drive corridor. The EA Study began in 1999 and concluded in November 2004 with recommendations adopted by Council.

A number of construction projects have already implemented recommendations from the EA Study, including:

Work on Simcoe Street, from Bradford Street to Mulcaster Street (3 construction phases);

Work on Toronto Street from Lakeshore Drive to Ross Street (2 construction phases);

Work at the Tiffin Street-Lakeshore Drive-Bradford Street-Essa Road Intersections

Bunker’s Creek and Dyment’s Creek

In 2001, Council adopted the recommendations in an EA Study for the Bunker’s Creek Master Drainage Plan. In general, the recommendations focus on improved creek flow capacity, creek channel stabilization and enhanced fish habitat.

In 2006, Council adopted the recommendations in an EA Study for the Dyment’s Creek Master Drainage Plan. In general, the recommendations focus on improved creek flow capacity, creek channel stabilization and enhanced fish habitat.

Dyment’s Creek from Bradford Street downstream across Lakeshore Drive to Kempenfelt Bay (at the Rotary Fountain at the south end of Centennial Beach) the recommendations provide road crossing culvert sizing and channel improvements through Centennial Park, and improvements to the pond between Bradford Street and Lakeshore Drive.

The Lakeshore Drive design follows the recommendations from the Waterfront/Downtown Transportation Improvements Class Environmental Assessment, completed in November 2004. The recommendations acknowledge a fine balance between the needs for:

vehicles accessing the waterfront and downtown;

pedestrians accessing the waterfront and downtown;

cyclists and rollerbladers accessing the waterfront and downtown;

boaters accessing the waterfront;

vehicles parking in parking lots along the waterfront;

vehicles parking on the street

Through the design process, City staff implemented industry standards and safety requirements including City of Barrie standards, Transportation Association of Canada design standards, Ontario Ministry of Transportation Geometric Design Standards, and Ontario Provincial Standards for Roads and Public Works.

There was a conscious desired effect of narrower roads to provide traffic calming that benefits pedestrians, cyclists, and other parks users. There are minimal access locations required as there is limited access points to other public or private property on the west side of the new Lakeshore Drive.

How will access to parking be affected once this project is complete?

While some former gravel area along Lakeshore will be converted into green space/pathways, the amount of formal parking spots will double.

The Marina Parking Lot currently has 34 spaces for vehicles and 11 spaces for vehicles with trailers; this lot have only one access. The other parking lots between Hotchkiss Creek and Toronto Street, with the majority of the lakefront parking capacity, will have 2 accesses. In addition, the one large parking lot south of Centennial Park will have traffic signals for one access.

How were traffic & park events impacted during the roadway construction?

In general, the new roadway construction was not on the existing roadway that occupied vehicular traffic. The contractor was required to provide at least 1 lane for vehicular traffic in each direction through the construction site when construction activity is encroaching the traffic lanes.

The contractor did close Lakeshore Drive for relatively short periods of time while the new roadway was tied into the existing roadway at Toronto Street and at Hotchkiss Creek Culvert Structure (near Tiffin Street).

The contractor had periodic delays to traffic while the construction equipment was performing some deliveries and turning maneuvers.

Emergency services received communications when the short term road closures were scheduled and when the roads were re-opened to through traffic. Detour routes during the road closures and sidewalk closures were signed within Barrie for the general public.

Pedestrian movement through the park were available during the various stages of construction.

Why was a boardwalk added to the beach?

The boardwalk has these primary functions:

Makes the beach more significantly accessible for those with mobility challenges

Separates the sand on the beach from the wood shavings in the playground

Adds aesthetic value to the waterfront

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